Air conditioning apparatus for motor vehicles



Oct. 31 1939.

E. DECKER AIR CONDITIONING APPARATUS FOR MOTOR VEHICLES Filed May 16, 1938 INV ENT OR.

Mr/ :7- DecKer: B Y

ZWW ATTORNEY.

Patented Oct. 31, 19 39 PATEN OFFICE AIR CONDITIONING APPARATUS Fon.

MOTOR VEHICLES Earl J. Decker,

Detroit, Mich.

Application May 1t, 1938, Serial No. 208,124

4 3 Claims. (01257-137) The present invention pertains to a novel air conditioning device designed particularly for use in connection with motor vehicles. The principal object of the-invention is. to provide such a device that can 'be used as a heater in cold weather and as a cooling unit in warm weather.

The device consists essentially of a tubularbody through which air is drawnby means of a p, fan. Within the body is a longitudinal core hav-. .ingtransverse passagestherethrough. .The air passes also through the core and in engagement with the walls of these passages. Hot water from the cooling system of the motor is permitted to flow through the passages so that heat is transferred to the air that flows past the passages. "The air thus warmed is discharged into the vehicle by the aforementioned fan.

At the inlet to the body is mounted a filter consisting preferably of copper cuttings. The air' enters througha limited area of perforations in the cap that houses the filter material. When the device is used as aheater, the cap is mounted with the perforations downward because the air entering at this location has already been warmed somewhat by the radiator of the motor.

The cap is so constructed that it may also be mounted with the perforations upward. This arrangement is preferred when using the device as a cooling unit, since the air entering at the upper position has not been heated to any considerable extent by the radiator of the motor. In using the device as a cooling unit the water inlet and outlet of the body are closed by means of plugs or valves in the water line, the body of the device and the core therein being previously filled with cold water. The circulating air is cooled by contact with the above mentioned .passages containing cold water and is discharged into the vehicle by means of the fan.

The fan and its electric motor are preferably supported at one end of the body of the device, usually the; outlet end. However, in some installations, it is preferable to have the iannearer the filter at the inlet end. Accordingly, the device is so constructed that the nozzle constituting the outlet and the filter cap constituting the inlet are interchangeable on the ends of the body. The invention is fully disclosed by way of example in'the following description and in the ccompanying drawing, in which. a Figure 1 is an elevation of the device;

Figure 2 is a longitudinal section thereof; Figures 3, 4 and 5 are sections on. the lines H and M respectively of Figure 2;

. partment'and the body 8 under the hood.

'mgure 6 is an enlarged detail of Figure 4;

F'igure 7 is an end view of Figure 2 with the cover removed, and

Figure .8 is a side elevation of the device in a different assembly.

Reference to these views will now be made by use .of like characters that are employed to thereto at 5. Tothe plate 5 is attached an elec- .tric motor 6 disposed within the body I and driving an exhaust fan I positioned in the nozzle and adapted to force air through the nozzle.

Within the body-l isjmounted a concentric core or tube 8 having a fiared forward end 9 welded or otherwise secured to the body. The rear end is received in the correspondingly apertured rear end wall I0 of the body. The core 8 has a number of open-ended tubes ll mounted transversely therein for a purpose that will presently appear.

A fitting [2 is mounted in the wall of the member I, preferably at the top, for connection to the water cooling system of the motor in a manner to admit water to the member I. Between the fitting and the-core 8 is an arcuate perforated baille plate l3'secured across the walls 9 and I. By means of this bafile, the water entering through the fitting Ill is distributed among the several tubes ll rather than permitted to flow entirely through the nearest tube or tubes.

0n the rear end of the body is fitted a cap containing a quantity of air filtering material l5 such as copper cuttings on a spool Hi. The only, inlet to the cap is the holes I! in thecylin-r 4o drlcal wall thereof, as shown more clearly in Figure 5.

' In the operation of the device, with reference to Flgure2, the motor driven fan 1 draws air into the inlet l|,-through the filter l5 and core 8, discharging the air through the nozzle 2 into the interior of the vehicle. This air makes contact with the tubes II that are warmed by the hot water of the motor cooling system, entering at the fitting I2- and discharging through a sim- 60 ilar fitting II at a diagonally opposite point on the wall of the body I. The device may be so mounted in the dash board IQ of the motor vehicle that the nozzle 2 lies in the drivers com- The nozzle 2 and the cap M are formed with diametrically opposite bayonet slots 20 at the portions thereof overlapping the body I. These portions carry diametrically opposite screws or studs 2|, as shown in Figures 4 and 6 adapted to engage in the bayonet slots when the parts 2 and I4 are mounted. The screws are tightened to secure these parts on the body.

In the arrangement described, the apparatus warms the interior of the vehicle. In order to cool the vehicle in the summer, the outlet I8 is plugged and the body is filled with water through the inlet l2 approximately to the level of the baflle l3. The inlet I2 is then also plugged. The cap i4 is removed and then replaced on the screws 2! at 180 from its former position. This adjustment brings the air inlet ll upward, where cooler air is available because of the particular mounting of the body I under the hood. In some installations it is preferable to have the fan directly adjacent to the filter IS. The device herein disclosed permits such an arrangement without change in construction and merely by a different positioning of the parts. For this purpose, the nozzle 2 and the cap M are interchangeable, whereby to bring the filter next to the fan as shown in Figure 8. Before mounting the cap in the new position it is necessary however to reverse the direction of the fan I which is done simply by removing the fan from its shaft and mounting it thereon in the reversed position.

The filter l5 can readily be rotated bodily within the cap I4 or on its spool 5. Thus, as the portion of the filter next to the inlet l1 becomes loaded, it may be shifted to bring another portion of the filter over the inlet.

Although a specific embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, it will be understood that various alterations in the details of construction may be made without departing from the scope of the invention, as indicated by the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. An air conditioning device comprising a tubular body having a water inlet and a water outlet, a tubular core mounted lengthwise in said body and having its ends sealed to said body, said core being spaced from the wall of said body to form an annular chamber therewith, tubes mounted transversely in said core and forming passages therethrough communicating with said chamber, said body having an air inlet at one end and an air outlet at the other end, a fan in said body and adapted to circulate the air from said inlet through said core to said outlet, a cap detachably mounted over said inlet, and filter material contained in said cap, said cap having intake ports in its lateral wall.

2. An air conditioning device comprising a tubular body having a water inlet and a water outlet, a tubular core mounted lengthwise in said body and having its ends sealed to said body, said core being spaced from the wall of said body to form an annular chamber therewith, tubes mounted transversely in said core and forming passages therethrough communicating with said chamber, a cap on one end of said body and having an air inlet in its lateral wall, a filter in said cap, an outlet member at the other end of said body, said cap being adapted for attachment to said body in either of two positions 180 apart, whereby the relative position of said slot can be changed, and a. fan in said body and adapted to circulate the air from said inlet through said core to said outlet.

3. An air conditioning device comprising a tubular body having a water inlet and a water outlet, a tubular core mounted. lengthwise in said body and having its ends sealed to said body, said core being spaced from the wall of said body to form an annular chamber therewith, tubes mounted transversely in said core and forming passages therethrough communicating with said chamber, a cap on one end of said body and having an air inlet in its lateral Wall, a rotatably adjustable filter in said cap, an outlet member at the other end of said body, and a fan in said body and adapted to circulate the air from said inlet through said core to said outlet.

EARL J. DECKER. 

